Door constructions for laundry machinery



Dec. 18, 1956 H. MILLER 2,774,506

DOOR CONSTRUCTIONS FOR LAUNDRY MACHINERY Filed May 3, 1956S'Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR.

HERMAN MILLER MW 5, W

ATTORNEYS Dec. 18, 1956 H. MILLER 2, 7

DOOR CONSTRUCTIONS FOR LAUNDRY MACHINERY Filed May 5, 1956 3Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR.

HERMAN MILLER BY (mm lg 9km ATTORNEYS H. MILLER 3 Sheets-Sheet 3INVENTOR.

HERMAN MILLE R ATTORNEYS DOOR CONSTRUCTIONS FOR LAUNDRY MACHINERY Dec.18, 1956 Filed May 3, 1956 United States P tm DOOR CONSTRUCTIONS FORLAUNDRY MACHINERY Herman Miller, Detroit, Mich., assignor to MillerLaundry Company, Detroit, Mich.

Application May 3, 1956, Serial No. 582,420

6 Claims. (01. 220-34 This application relates to laundry machinery andmore particularly to automatic double door constructions for suchmachinery. I

The door construction is disclosed hereinin association with ahorizontal washing machine of a size and type used in commercial laundryand known as a low front opening horizontal washing machinecharacterized by the provision in the horizontal cylindricalshellcontaining the rotating cylinder of a large front opening having theupper and lower edges well above and well below the water level withinthe shell with such openings normally closed by a door.

In a presently known construction, the door used in such devices is asliding arcuate door which slides around the shell on arcuate tracks, upand down, to open and close the door opening. Because it is necessaryto'have an extremely tight and eltective seal between the door and theshell when the door is closed it becomes necessary for the door to beclose fitting within the track with attendant disadvantages and problemsdue to friction and the necessity for maintaining perfect alignment. Inaddition, the movement of the door in the direction indicated causesconsiderable wear on the seal with the result that it becomesincreasingly diflicult as time goes on to maintain satisfactory sealing.Likewise, because of the great friction required in a close fitting doorand track construction it is difficult to raise and lower the door andthis in turn makes it quite undesirable to attempt to raise and lowerthe door by automatic equipment.

In this application there is disclosed for machines of this generalcharacter an automatic double door construction characterized by thefact that the door is split into two halves horizontally on a centerline and these halves are [folded and swung upwardly for exposing theopening and likewise lowered to form a continuous door for closing theopening. In addition, there is provided a means for moving the door,when closed, radially towards the shell ifor effectively sealing thedoor to the shell at such times.

The actuating or operating means for the mechanism that raises or lowersor swings the door and folds it or extends it as the case may be is asingle operating mechanism preferably of the piston and cylinder typewhich provides automatic actuation for all of the parts and because ofthe specific formation of the mechanism actuated by such piston andcylinder device the opening and closing movements are compound. Thus,for example in the opening movement the first part of the movement isthe movement of the door radially away from the shell to remove the doorfrom the seal and the ISCCOIld part of the movement is to swing and foldthe doors upwardly. Reversely, when the door is to be closed the firstpart of the movement is to unfold the doors and to swing them down toclosing position after which another movement of the parts takes placeto move the door radially toward the shell for eflective sealing.

A better understanding of the invention will be ob- 2,774,506 PatentedDec. 18, 1956 "ice tained upon reference to the appended drawingsdisclosing a preferred embodiment. In these drawings,

Fig. l is a diagrammatic small scale end view of the shell and doorconstruction in closed position;

Fig. 2 is a similar view but showing the door open;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged view showing the operating mechanism in full linesin closed position and in dotted lines in open position;

7 Fig. 4 is a front view as if from the right of Fig. 3 on arrow 4;

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary section view as if on line 5-5 of Fig. 4.

The drawings show'a horizontal cylindrical shell 10. This may contain arotating cylinder, and may be equipped for use as a washing machine, orif desired for use as a tumbler. The rotating cylinder is not shown, forpurposes of clarity.

The shell is mounted horizontally to contain the cylinder which rotateson a center axis 11 and has a front opening 12 bounded by horizontaledges 1314 and vertical edges 15, only one of which is shown in Fig. 4.Surrounding and framing the edges 13, 14, and 15 which form the opening12 in the shell 10 is a sealing means 16 in the form of a strip ofsealing material such as rubber and sometimes known as a gasket.

For closing the opening 12 whose upper and lower edges are well aboveand well below the axis 11 of the cylinder and whose vertical edges 15are near the fiat ends 17 of the shell, such opening being known as alarge low front opening, there is provided a front door construction 20now to be described. The door construction includes an upper half 21 anda lower half 22. The upper half is hinged at its upper edge 23 to astrip 23a fixed to the shell near but somewhat above the edge 13 of theopening. The lower half has its lower edge 24 sometimes positioned nearbut below the edge 14 of the opening 12. Both halves 21 and 22 arehinged to each other on a hinge line 25 near the center of the opening12.

The construction is such that the upper half can swing up on its upperedge 23 as a pivot from the full line position to the dotted lineposition shown in Fig. l to expose the opening. At the same time andtherewith the lower half 22 can swing up on its upper edge as a pivot tothe [dotted line position of Fig. l to overly the upper half 21. Bothhalves 21 and 22 can swing down together to form a continuous door 20 toclose the opening 12.

Now to be described is a means for swinging the halves together up ordown, and also a means for moving the halves after they are in closingposition radially towards the axis 11 of the shell 10 to seal the halvestightly against the shell and the shell sealing means 16 for sealing theopening 12 at that time closed by the door 20. The door swinging anddoor sealing means comprises a link 30 whose lower end is pivotallyconnected by means of a pin 24!: at the lower edge 24 of lower half 22.The upper end of link 30 is connected by a fixed pivot 31 to a bracket32 on the flat end 17 of shell 10. A bracket 33 also on shell end 17carries a fixed arm 34 whose upper end is connected by a fixed pivot 35to a link 36 connected by a floating pivot 37 to a Y-shaped link 38 oneof whose ends is formed with a cam notch as shown at 41 to receive thehinge pin 25 which connects the upper and lower door halves. The thirdend of the Y link 38 is connected by a floating pivot 42 to the pistonrod 43 whose piston 44 is within cylinder 45 pivotally mounted at 46 ona bracket 47 secured to the end 17 of the shell.

The links 30 and 38 intersect each other to form an X and are pivotallyconnected to each other by a floating pivot 49.

Operation Starting with the door in the closed full line position ofFig. 1, the door may be opened automatically by the admission of airinto the air inlet 52 of the double acting cylinder 45. Piston 44 movesup and in the first part of its movement causes the cam notch 41 of link38 to release the hinge pin 25 and thus release the door 20 from theseal 16. Further movement of the piston in response to air at inlet 52causes :link 30 to rotate counterclockwise (Fig. 1) on its pivot 31 toswing the door halves quickly to the dotted line position of Fig. l forfull opening.

For door closing, air is admitted into the double acting cylinder 45 atinlet 53 to move the piston down and to swing the link and the doorhalves from the dotted line open position of Fig. 1 to the full lineclosed position.

The final part of the movement of the piston 44 downward in cylinder 45causes engagement of the hinge pin 25 in the cam notch 41 of link 33 andalso causes link 33 to move radially towards the axis 11 of the shelland thus to cause by a cam action at 41-25 the door halves 21-22likewise to move radially toward the axis 11 and tightly against theseal 16.

Now having described the construction and operation of the preferredembodiment herein disclosed reference should be had to the claims whichfollow.

I claim:

1. In a combination including a horizontal cylindrical shell having afront door opening where vertical edges are near the fiat ends of theshell and whose horizontal edges are well above and well below thecenter axis of the shell to define a large low front opening, andincluding a front door construction for closing and exposing saidopening, said door construction including an upper half hinged at itsupper edge to the shell near but above the upper edge of the dooropening and a lower half having its lower edge sometimes positioned nearbut below the lower edge of the door opening, with both halves hinged toeach other near the center of the opening, the construction being suchthat the upper half can swing up on its upper edge as a pivot to exposethe opening and at the same time and therewith the lower half can swingup on its upper edge as a pivot to overlie the upper half, and bothhalves can swing down together to form a continuous door to close theopening and including means for swinging the halves upwardly together ordownwardly together to expose or close the opening, in such acombination sealing means for moving the halves after theyare inposition to close the opening towards the axis of the shell to seal thehalves tightly against the shell for sealing the opening then closed bythe door.

2. A construction according to claim 1 wherein the swinging and sealingmeans comprise parts of a single operating mechanism operated insuccessive movements by a single operating means.

3. A construction according to claim 1 wherein the swinging and sealingmeans comprise parts of a single operating mechanism opera-ted insuccessive movements by a single operating means and the operatingmechanism comprising a linkage having a cam member for moving the hingeline connecting the halves radially towards the axis after the linkagehas moved the halves to closing position,

4. A construction according to claim 1 wherein the swinging and sealingmeans comprise parts of a single operating mechanism operated insuccessive movements by a single operating means and the operatingmechanism comprising a linkage having a cam member for moving the hingeline connecting the haflves radially to wards the axis after the linkagehas moved the halves to closing position and wherein a piston-cylindermeans is the operating means.

5. A construction according to claim 1 wherein the swinging and sealingmeans comprise parts of a single operating mechanism operated insuccessive movements by a single operating means and the operatingmechanism comprising a linkage having a cam member for moving the hingeline connecting the halves radially towards the axis after the linkagehas moved the halves to closing position and wherein a piston-cylindermeans is the operating means, the linkage including an X of pivotallyconnected links, one of which is connected to the lower edge of thelower half and the other of which carries the cam member for releasablyengaging the hinge connecting the halves and moving such hinge radiallytowards the shell axis after the halves are in closing position, withthe piston-cylinder being conected to one of the links.

6. A construction according to claim 1 wherein the swinging and sealingmeans comprise parts of a single operating mechanism operated insuccessive movements by a single operating means and the operatingmechanism comprising a linkage having a cam member for moving the hingeline connecting the halves radially towards the axis after the linkagehas moved the halves to closing position and wherein a piston-cylindermeans is the operating means, the linkage including an X of pivotallyconnected links, one of which is connected to the lower edge of thelower half and the other of which carries the cam member for releasablyengaging the hinge connecting the halves and moving such hinge radiallytowards the shell axis after the halves are in closing position, withthe piston-cylinder being connected to one of the links, namely, thelink having the cam for releasably engaging the hinge connecting thehalves.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS2,113,291 Clark Apr. 5, 1938 2,241,179 Brenkert May 6, 1941 2,578,125Brotman Dec. 11, 1951 2,702,142 Jones Feb. 15, 1955

